This invention relates to spring-loaded rings formed of deformable resin material for compressing between mating parts to provide a fluid seal around isolator diaphragms in pressure transmitters. Spring-loaded resin seals are known, for example, as taught in U.S. Pat. No. 4,508,356 to Janian, hereby incorporated herein by reference.
In pressure transmitters, a continuous sealing groove generally encircles an isolator diaphragm on the transmitter to receive a seal which, in turn, seals to a flange which delivers process fluid to the transmitter as shown in cross-section in FIG. 1. To meet the requirements of chemical, pressure and temperature cycling compatibility, various seal shapes and materials are used.
In some applications, a resin polymer material, polytetrafluoroethylene, is selected for the seal and formed in a generally triangular shape to fit the groove. After compression in the groove, as shown in FIG. 2, a portion of the seal material can extrude out of the groove. In some applications, a backup ring made of less resilient material is placed in the groove along with the seal to prevent extrusion of the ring outside of the groove. In applications where the temperature changes cyclically, the seal material extrudes out at high temperatures and then when the transmitter is returned to a lower temperature, the sealing force originally placed on the seal is reduced. Over time, the seal can develop leaks because of this reduced sealing force, and the flange must be re-tightened, or in some cases, the seal must be replaced. The high sealing force used can deflect the walls of the groove and deflect the adjacent isolator diaphragm leading to errors in the pressure transmitter output which requires recalibration of the output. The high sealing force used can also cause instability of the transmitter output as the force varies with temperature.
Seals formed of a metal shell surrounding a central spring also are used, but the metal shell has limited ability to deform to seal to the groove surfaces, and exerts very large forces on the seal surfaces which deflect the isolator diaphragm enough to undesirably shift the calibration of the pressure transmitter.
Pressure transmitter seals surrounding isolator diaphragms present a special sealing problem because there is a desire for a relatively high initial sealing force to ensure complete sealing after temperature cycling, but a conflicting need to reduce the sealing force to a controlled level to avoid undue deflection of the isolator diaphragm from distortion of the surrounding seal groove. A more robust seal for pressure transmitters is desired which maintains an adequate sealing force over temperature cycling while also presenting a deformable surface to form a seal to the groove walls, without using excess force which would deflect the isolator diaphragm by an unacceptable amount.